The attack coincided with the celebration of Kyiv Day, the anniversary of the city's foundation.
Ukraine's Air Force reported that Russia launched a record 54 Iranian-made Shahed drones on Ukrainian targets, with 52 of them being shot down. Russia, which began its all-out invasion in February last year, has recently intensified its attacks on Kyiv, looking to overcome the capital's defenses.
Two high-rise buildings in Kyiv caught fire during the attack. Kyiv officials also reported that warehouses in the southern Holosiyivsky district had been set on fire.
According to Ukrainian officials more than 40 drones were shot down over the capital overnight, but this information has not been confirmed.
"You look up to destroy enemy missiles, aircraft, helicopters and drones. Every time you shoot down enemy drones and missiles, lives are saved. You are heroes," said Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in praise of the air defense and rescue personnel.
Air raid alerts were activated early Sunday in 12 regions of Ukraine, from Volyn in the north-west to Dnipropetrovsk in the southeast. There were also reports of blasts in the city of Zhytomyr, west of Kyiv.
Russia using kamikaze drones and variety of cruise and ballistic missiles against Ukraine
In its recent attacks, Russia employed kamikaze drones in addition to a variety of cruise and ballistic missiles. (Related: Ukraine may have tried to ASSASSINATE Vladimir Putin using a kamikaze drone.)
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The rate of the Russian attacks on Kyiv and elsewhere has been rising as Ukraine prepares a counter-offensive. On Saturday, May 27, one of Ukraine's most senior security officials told the BBC that the country is ready to begin such an operation.
Oleksiy Danilov, secretary of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine, declared that an attack to reclaim territory from [Russian] President Vladimir Putin's occupying forces could start "tomorrow, the day after tomorrow or in a week."
Ukraine has planned a counter-offensive for months. However, it needed more time to train its troops and to receive military supplies from Western allies.
"We are preparing the battlefield for the new phase of the war. It's going on now. It is a large number of measures in different sectors of the front line," Mykhailo Podolyak, a senior adviser to Zelensky, said in an interview with NBC News on Saturday.
Podolyak also lauded a skillfully made video posted on Telegram Saturday by Valerii Zaluzhnyi, the commander in chief of Ukraine's armed forces. The video showed Ukrainian troops training, swearing an oath and preparing for battle.
If Ukraine's top general is implying that, he will have a good reason according to Podolyak while adding that it showed "that Ukraine may be almost ready to start a big operation aimed at the liberation of its territories."
Meanwhile, Russian forces have been preparing their defenses in the occupied regions of southeastern Ukraine.
Drone attacks by both sides have been increasing with Russia targeting not just Ukraine's crucial national infrastructure but also military targets. Russia appears to be attempting not only to drain Ukraine's stock of air defense missiles, but also to destroy the launch systems themselves.
Ukraine has been targeting essential locations in sections of the country occupied by Russian forces, including command and control sites, logistical supply lines and oil storage centers.
Follow UkraineWitness.com for more news about the ongoing Russia-Ukraine War.
Watch the video below about the capabilities of Iranian-made Shahed-136 drone.
This video is from the Cynthia's Pursuit of Truth channel on Brighteon.com.
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